In the construction of taxi meters it was important to provide a durable and tamper-proof construction. This type of construction was necessary in order to insure that the fare charged to the passenger was accurate and in accordance with the regulated fare as calibrated in the meter.
To achieve this result, the art was directed to providing the construction features and elements fully encased within a heavy duty housing. Many of the housing features were of cast and machined metal construction. While such constructions were generally tamper-proof, the heavy duty construction and encasement was costly, cumbersome and caused disrepair to the meter electrical connectors. Disassembly, maintenance and repair of the encased elements was excessively time consuming and unduly costly. Typical causes of disrepair and maintenance were; (1) the damage to the meter electrical connector by repeated removal (usually by lifting) and replacement of the meter for repair, maintenance or fare calibration, and (2) the jamming of the fare receipt paper of the paper feeder which required disassembly of the meter for access to the paper feeder. A costly and cumbersome construction feature was a machined parts hinged door for the access to and regular replenishment of the fare receipt paper.